Fanculo Alla Corte Suprema! – Italy’s Supreme Court condemns recreational marijuana

Italy’s Supreme Court has halted all ongoing plans to legalize recreational cannabis across the region. Before that, a referendum should be included in the election ballots so voters can decide whether or not to legalize marijuana in the country. Last Tuesday’s ruling by Italy’s top court prevented all proposed marijuana and psilocybin measures from being put before voters.

A temporary defeat

Plans to decriminalize adult-use cannabis in the country have faced an uphill struggle since they were launched. The aim of the bill is to legalize home cultivation of psychoactive plants, particularly cannabis, and psychedelics, particularly psilocybin mushrooms.

First, proponents faced the challenge of eliciting public support for the law from voters, and eventually managed to collect over 600,000 signatures last year. The signatures were submitted to the Supreme Court of Cassation. Last month, the signatures submitted were finally validated by the courts. This would have meant progress in planning. However, the court stated that the votes cast were insufficient to bring the referendum to a vote. The court also pointed out that the referendum must be reviewed by another constitutional court to determine whether its provisions and language meet the country’s legal standards.

The Constitutional Court ruled that the cannabis and psilocybin measures fell short of constitutional legal standards, meaning all plans are effectively ended. At the same time, the court announced a renewed rejection of a medical initiative aimed at giving terminally ill patients the right to euthanasia.

For cannabis enthusiasts and advocates across the country, this is a temporary setback. You can start over to ensure that the initiative is known to voters early enough.

The next step

The most practical step for cannabis advocacy groups now is to pause to regroup and then restart the project. In a Facebook post a few hours after the court ruling was published, the referendum campaign committee expressed its disappointment with the court’s decision. It described the decision as “a win for the Mafia”. The committee said they don’t see this ruling as a defeat for the cannabis advocacy group and the thousands of Italians who signed the petition. They wrote that this defeat was for federal institutions that have refused to understand a significant part of the country.

This is the country’s first and most important recreational cannabis initiative to be shut down by the top courts. The referendum campaign groups have announced they will come back stronger to fight for a legal adult cannabis market. They promised that the next measure would be the last.

The legal standard

The Constitutional Court has the task of ensuring that any proposed law or referendum does not conflict with existing constitutions, tax systems and international laws. Members of the cannabis reform campaign were confident that the initiative would pass through this court, but the fifteen judges involved disagreed, as their verdict shows.

The proposed reform was very different from the regular voting initiatives recorded and approved on ballots in the United States. Language suggested Italians grow a few herbal recreational drugs but failed to enact bans on the processing of those drugs. However, this would not affect the legality of marijuana and entheogenic drugs like psilocybin as they require no additional processing or manufacturing.

Drugs like hash would be banned because they are made from raw marijuana flowers. The bill would also have retained the existing penalties for possession and use of more than the permitted amount of cannabis. Current liabilities include a fine and, in extreme cases, an indictment.

breach of international obligations

Constitutional Court President Giuliano Amato said the country would have been in a compromising situation if the bill had passed. Italy is a member of several international bodies and is obliged to comply with certain laws. The scope of the measure for multiple medicinal products would lead to a direct violation of these international laws.

Amano pointed out that these obligations are undeniable limitations contained in the constitution. The aim of the reform was unsuitable for the existing constitution. He stressed that the referendum was not limited to marijuana but included drugs like poppy seeds and even coca – one of the most addictive drugs.

The advocacy team debated that the court’s decision was based on a misunderstanding about which provisions of the Constitution’s drug code would be affected by the proposal.

The build up to this moment

When the activists presented the proposal to the legislature, they were given until the end of September to submit the necessary signatures to get the referendum to the polls. An extension was granted when a complication arose related to the processing of signatures. The new method of collecting signatures online instead of in person is one of the reasons the campaign was able to collect hundreds of thousands of votes in such a short time.

While all of this was happening, the House Judiciary Committee has introduced a bill to decriminalize small-scale private cultivation of marijuana. Beyond this point, reform has yet to progress. Malta has now become the first European country to successfully legalize cannabis. A few days before the end of 2021, the small government approved the reform.

Germany is also preparing to legalize cannabis in a few years. The new coalition government announced that legislation legalizing marijuana was of the utmost importance. At the moment, the plan is being pursued to address the never-ending problems of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, the Luxembourg parliament is expected to vote on a proposal to legalize cannabis before the end of the first quarter.

final remark

It is not uncommon for the court to take action against initial initiatives to amend existing laws. This event is expected in the US

Italy’s cannabis advocacy groups have promised to work on the flawed and inconsistent policies highlighted by Italy’s top constitutional court. They will focus more on drafting a perfect reform that would overcome legal obstacles.

Don’t rule out the possibility that the legislatures are working on other reforms while advocacy campaigns prepare to restart.

MORE ABOUT LEGALIZATION IN ITALY, READ THIS…

ITALIAN MARIJUANA LAWS ARE BOILED TO LEGALIZE CANNABIS!

OR..

ITALY GETS THE VOTES TO ALLOW THE LEGALIZATION VOTE!